Be scared, be very scared

Local residents looking for a Halloween full of fear and anticipation won’t have to travel far, with the return of East Sooke’s annual haunt, Eerie Acres.

“Eerie Acres is a sanctuary for anything that goes bump in the night,” said Lindsay Trowell, event organizer and co-founder.

She said Eerie Acres is a rehabilitation facility for all sorts of ghoulish and diabolical creatures, who, at times, find it difficult to stay on their best behaviour.

“Some of them aren’t very well-behaved and can sometimes act out,” Trowell said. “That’s kind of the script behind our haunted house.” Although Trowell was reluctant to release the details, she said the haunt takes place in two rooms of the house, and around the one-acre property, including the woods. Tour guides will be made available to direct people throughout the haunt.

To add a few details, the darkened and foggy haunt includes actors, animatronics and intricately designed props — many of which are lurid in nature.

There will be awnings and covered areas in the event of rain, and “bail out” areas, when it gets too scary for some attendees.

Eerie Acres is currently in it’s seventh year, and Trowell said participation numbers have been growing steadily since the haunt’s inception, from 50 people the first year to about 400 last year.

“We’ve had people all over the South Island, all the way up to Duncan come to our haunt,” she said.

In order to keep up with the hype, Trowell said new features are added each year.

“Every year we try and add something to make it different.”

The event takes an entire month to set up, and Trowell said all the work is done for the kids of East Sooke.

“Ultimately, the driving force is the kids, because in East Sooke there’s not a whole lot of stuff for people to do,” she said.

“We enjoy seeing the kids laugh and seeing the kids scream and then laugh.”

Although the Trowell family are horror magnets, the event is also done in support of community members each year.

This year, Eerie Acres will raise money to help an East Sooke woman with developmental disabilities, who is considered chronic health, cross something off her bucket list.

“We want to help her raise the money so she can purchase an item that would otherwise be unattainable for her to do,” Trowell said.

Eerie Acres is located on 1468 Woodcock Rd, near the East Sooke firehall, and will be open:

Friday, Oct. 26 from 7-11 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 27 from 6-10 p.m.

Wednesday, Oct. 31 (Halloween night) from 6-10 p.m.

There will be signs bearing skeleton hands to direct the way along the roadway.

There will be required donation, ($3 suggested) or a donation to the Sooke Food Bank.